Happy Trails
by AnotherTakenUsername
Summary: The Great Journey goes a little differently than Jason Bright had anticipated. Shenanigans ensue.
1. Chapter 1

_It's happening!_

Those words kept racing through Jason Bright's head, tumbling alongside the rest of his body as the turbulence pressed him against his seat. Around him, more of his followers were similarly struggling against the unfamiliar sensation, feeling the immense strain of gravity trying to force them backwards.

And yet, despite the physical forces pressing against his body, he couldn't help but feel a sense of relief and joy at his current circumstances.

The Great Journey was finally underway.

Years of failures, sacrifices, setbacks, and worse…

All of them had been _worthwhile_.

Yes, there had been unfortunate decisions to be made. Leaving Chris Haversam behind, however well-intentioned the reasoning was, had not been an easy choice to make. There were also the countless members of his flock they had lost along the way, unfairly taken before the Journey could even be attempted.

But they had triumphed, despite the pain and hardships they had struggled through.

Glancing out the nearest window, Jason saw the two other rockets flying nearby, appearing as vivid orange streaks breaking through the thin atmosphere. It had been a nerve-wracking experience to lift-off, seeing the other vessels careening through the sky, but they'd managed to correct their courses at the last moment.

They were finally on their way. Free from the wastelands, from discrimination, from hardship…

_It's happening!_

The rockets continued to accelerate, swiftly moving through the thin outer layers of Earth's thin upper atmosphere. The entire planet was visible, colored in swathes of brown, white, blue, and a few small patches of green.

It was beautiful, observing the pure presence and life of the planet on a scale seen by so few. It was terrible, witnessing the horrible scars from the Great War, still left over after centuries of change.

As the hours went by, the Earth slowly began to shrink from view, quickly followed by the pockmarked surface of the moon. The view from the window slowly zoomed further and further out, with the pale blue dot of Earth gradually fading amongst a background of stars.

Months passed by, with other planets appearing into view and fading in what felt like a matter of moments. The otherworldly rust-red surface of Mars, the majestic rings of Saturn, the frozen hellscape of Neptune…

And finally, after countless moments of sailing through the solar system, their ultimate destination was finally in sight.

It was a secret that Jason Bright had hidden from all but the most devoted, loyal followers of the Bright Brotherhood. Even that courier, who had been the key to ensuring the Great Journey would be successful, had never been told the truth.

But as the vast, incomprehensible alien structure slowly came into view, it was impossible to hide his plan any longer.

Jason had been planning the Great Journey for years before discovering the structure, hoping that some of the old moon bases would still be serviceable. However, those plans had all changed the day he had tried to scavenge from that old observatory. When he had looked through the telescope and observed the incomprehensible object, lying just within the orbit of that distant planet…

Well, why stay so close to Earth when the Journey could bring them so much further?

The alien structure loomed proudly ahead, surrounded by massive chunks of shattered ice and debris, as if it had broken out of some immense casing long ago. Two extensive, sleek protrusions stretched off at one end of the structure, connecting around a larger, circular core. Several smaller rings floated freely in the center of the core, unconnected from the rest of the structure yet completely still.

It was even more magnificent than Earth had been.

The ships approached cautiously, afraid to disturb whatever may have been onboard the device. Nothing happened, even as they began to move closer towards the end of the structure.

It was only when one of them had approached the circular rings at the core of the structure that the alien device activated. Lights flashed across the length of it, illuminating both it and the Brotherhood's ships. The two rings at the center rapidly began to spin, causing a powerful, intense blue light at the center to appear and sending arcs of lightning to spark between the two protrusions.

Jason looked on with a sense of awe, observing as one of the ships was dragged towards the light. It continued to accelerate, moving faster and faster and _faster_ until it finally vanished, vanishing into the distance faster than his eyes could track. Grinning wildly, he started to pilot his own spaceship towards the alien structure's core.

_The Great Journey can finally, _truly_ begin!_ He thought, as the vast forces of the alien device dragged his flock into the stars.

* * *

"And you're _positive_ that these are the only vessels to make it through?" Captain Arvus asked, feeling a fresh migraine begin to spring up.

"Yes, sir. We've been trying to hail them, but we're only picking up a few scattered radio signals. Nothing we can make out from here." His second-in-command stated, looking over the new reports on his omni-tool with a critical eye. "Stranger still, we aren't picking up any eezo readings at all! Instead, all we're seeing is lethal levels of radiation coming off of those ships!"

Arvus sighed, resisting the urge to slam his head into his command console. He'd rushed his ship into position as soon as they'd gotten word of a previously dormant Relay activating, sending out warnings to whatever Hierarchy vessels were nearby for assistance. The crew of the _Eternal Vigil_ had been spreading rumors ever since the new orders had gone out, worrying about some fresh horror making its way through the Relay network.

And now, after all that stress and trouble, they'd found three conical, rusted pieces of scrap metal that could only vaguely be considered space worthy.

Arvus could almost hear the universe laughing at him, the victim of yet another cosmic joke.

He shook his head, trying to get his thoughts back on track. Regardless of how primitive the ships were, they were still an unknown entity that had made their way through an unused Relay. By the Citadel's laws, these new arrivals had already given him more than enough reasons to open fire…

But then he'd have to fill out more paperwork. Worse still, he'd still likely end up getting yelled at for 'overly aggressive conduct', 'bloodthirsty behavior', 'destroying unknown technology', and similarly annoying things by those same Citadel bureaucrats.

_Spirits, I hate my job._

"Prepare some drones and a boarding team. Dangerous or not, we still need to figure out what's on those ships, and who sent them." Arvus decided. Best case scenario, they'd make friendly first contact with a new species and only have a few cases of mild radiation sickness to deal with.

Worst case scenario, the unknown ships had no shields, armor, or weapons to speak of. The _Vigil_ may not have been the best frigate in the Hierarchy's fleets, but it may as well have been the _Destiny Ascension_ compared to these new 'ships'.

_Besides,_ Arvus mused, _it's not like they can be as horrifying as the Rachni were._

* * *

"_Boarding team, give us a sitrep. Have you made it inside the vessel yet?"_

"Negative, we're still trying to cut through the airlock." Tanivia replied. "It should be ready to open any second now."

"_Affirmative. Remember, let us know as soon as you have visual contact with whatever's inside. _Vigil, _out._"

"Like we _could_ forget." She grumbled, checking over her rifle one last time. Around her, the rest of the squad was performing similar last-minute checks with varying degrees of resignation.

The history books had always made first contact seem like such an exciting event back during the history classes. Hearing about the Hierarchy's legendary initial meetings with the Asari and the Salarians back during the Rachni Wars had always been a favorite topic of Tanivia's, back when she was a child.

Having to sit in vacuum while magnetized to an unknown, highly-irradiated ship when her own vessel was prepared to open fire at the slightest alert definitely made those old stories seem less exciting, in retrospect.

On the plus side, they'd given breaching duty over to Caepius instead of her this time. It probably wasn't the best thought to have, considering the amount of risk Caepius had been put in, but it was still a little comforting. She'd seen enough horror holovids and fought against enough pirates to know that the first person through the door was rarely the one who survived.

"Alright, I've cut through the airlock!" Caepius suddenly called out, bringing Tanivia out of her thoughts. "Everyone, form up!"

Gingerly, the squad slowly got into position around the rusted metal doorway. As soon as the last soldier had made it, Caepius began tugging against the door. As soon as the dim interior of the ship was revealed, Tanivia snapped her rifle up, seeing movement inside.

"Contacts inside!" Tanivia shouted, turning on her flashlight.

Immediately, several inhabitants were brought into view, throwing up their arms to ward off the sudden light. The materials of their suits were bizarre, shaped out of a vivid red material that covered most of their bodies. The ends of their appendages were covered in what appeared to be grey gloves and boots, although it was difficult to tell.

"Unknowns don't appear to be armed," Tanivia began, slowly moving inside after Caepius. "They're bipedal, and…"

Any other thoughts she may have had died as soon as she caught a glimpse at the alien's head.

Their skulls were completely rotting, leaving holes and exposed bone open for her to witness. Uneven, pocked flesh hung loosely from their hairless bodies, as sunken, clouding eyes stared back wildly at her. Some didn't even _have_ flesh in some areas, leaving only thin, ugly tendons lying over their mouths or necks.

Moments later, the squad's comms were filled with panicked screams.


	2. Chapter 2

The Citadel Council was well-known as the highest power in the galaxy. Having lasted for thousands of years, it had seen the rise and fall of countless species, civilizations, and challengers before it, establishing their dominance over all but the far-flung Terminus Systems.

Equipped with the military might of the Turian Hierarchy, the political masterminds of the Asari Republics, and the technological mastery of the Salarian Union, the Council had long considered itself to have been prepared for any possible threat or opportunity.

That was, until reports began to stream in from Relay 314.

Eye-witness accounts spoke of heavily necrotized beings, equipped with technology that was simultaneously highly advanced and horribly antiquated. Rusted steel hulls, horrifically unsafe atomic reactors, and spacesuits made of glass and simple plastic polymers contrasted with handheld plasma and laser weaponry, microfusion technology, and incredibly fast-acting medicines.

_And of _course, _we had to find out about that last tidbit because of a mistake,_ Tevos groaned internally.

Nearby, Sparatus and Valern were focused intently on their own reports, albeit for different reasons. The Turian councilor had been trying to figure out who was responsible for the First Slaughter, as the news outlets described the situation. Meanwhile, Valern was simultaneously trying to discover the technological secrets the strange aliens had possessed and clamp down on the fast-spreading leaks from the first responders.

Sadly, even with the resources of the STG at their disposal, it was too late to stop all the news from leaking out. A few anonymous holonet posts had revealed pictures of the ships, redacted combat logs, and even some footage from one of the first response teams. The posts had been removed, but the damage had already gotten out of control. Crowds had been gathered outside the Citadel Tower for days, protesting the 'atrocity' that had occurred and demanding the crew of the _Eternal Vigil_ be punished.

_Maybe we should just release the autopsy reports,_ Tevos mused. _I doubt they'd be so upset once they saw what came through._

While the reports of the strange technology were interesting, the reports of the aliens themselves were unsettling at best. Their bodies had been heavily damaged, to the point where it seemed that their genes had heavily mutated and degraded. The effects of long-term radiation exposure were a constant among all of them, with one of the aliens even producing it _from its own body._

"So…" Sparatus spoke, acting unusually uncertain. "How are we supposed to respond to this?"

"Well, we could try sending our own expedition through the relay." Valern responded, still poring over the vast number of reports. "They had to have come from somewhere, and if we can obtain more of this technology, it could prove to be highly beneficial."

"What about the risks, though? Yes, these ships were the only ones that were encountered, but what if they were just refugees, or pirates?" Tevos asked.

"If the state of those ships was anything to go off of, I doubt that we'll face anything particularly troublesome." Sparatus said. "We've got an entire fleet sitting right by the relay, including the _Eternal Vigil_. If we send them through, we can secure the other side and get that ship out of the public eye."

Tevos nodded, looking over the rest of the vessels in the response fleet. The composition was formidable enough, with numerous frigates, cruisers, and a dreadnought present. While most of the ships and crew were Turian, there were a healthy number of other species present. Asari and Salarian vessels had recently arrived, and several minor species were present as parts of their support staff.

_That should be enough to hold over those damned crowds for the time being,_ Tevos mused, turning her omnitool to the latest news broadcasts. There had already been several clashes between C-Sec and protesters, and while there hadn't been any fatalities, injuries were still common.

"Very well. We'll see what's on the other side soon enough." Tevos nodded, adding her vote to the motion.

"Agreed." Valern said, finalizing the decision.

For the first time in years, a Citadel expedition would explore beyond an unknown relay.

* * *

Ever since the Second Battle of Hoover Dam, the entire Mojave had experienced unprecedented change.

The NCR, still high on success from their heroic victory over the Legion, had continued to invest vast amounts of manpower, money, and other resources into developing the region, transforming the area from a wartorn hellhole to a slightly less wartorn hellhole in a matter of years. The Dam was operating at full capacity, Freeside was beginning to rebuild and recover as new settlers arrived, and NCR patrols went across the crumbling highways and roads, slaughtering mutants and raiders indiscriminately.

Civilization, in all its terrible glory, had come to the Mojave.

_And what a disaster it is,_ Courier Six thought, gulping down his newest bottle of scotch.

He still remembered the days before all of this had come to pass. Back then, all that had mattered was a platinum chip, supplies in his bag, and going after _that motherfucker_ in the hideous suit. The NCR, while flawed, had seemed like the best way to achieve his goals while still keeping some faint semblance of morality.

_Well, it's not like House or Caesar would have been any better to this place,_ he mused, reaching over for the next bottle of alcohol._ At least I can say that._

He frowned, looking out the window of the Lucky 38. Sure, the NCR was actually putting in an effort to help the place, and sure, they'd been willing to leave him the keys to House's old house…

…But sometimes he still missed the days before the Battle. Back when he'd killed House, and was pondering the best course of action going forward. He still remembered the claims of Yes Man, promising an independent Vegas, completely under the Courier's rule…

Six snorted. _Hell, given my usual 'problem-solving' tactics, maybe this is for the best. Who knows, I'd probably have just ended up as the newest warlord out here, or something._

After the NCR had emerged victorious, however, he had unexpectedly been both ignored and praised for his actions. The NCR's troops and the locals looked up to him for his actions, while the NCR's leaders had done their best to gloss over his involvement as long as he wasn't an official citizen. He was stuck in limbo, too popular to throw away yet too controversial to accept.

The solution had been simple: unofficial house arrest. He could never leave so long as the NCR's spotlight was shining down directly upon him, but he couldn't bring it upon himself to be their newest poster boy. All that was left for him was the solitude of the Lucky 38, waiting until he could finally fade into the background once more.

_That, and finishing off all the booze in the city,_ Six corrected himself, pulling over a bottle of whiskey. He'd already gone through four bottles in the past hour, and the hotel's bar was still practically overflowing with rare alcohols.

He sighed, putting the bottle to his lips as he glanced outside-

And paused. Blinking, Six set the bottle back down before moving closer to the window.

Something was moving in the skies. It didn't look like an NCR Vertibird, or even the Boomers' repaired bomber. Instead, small white boxes slowly fell down from the sky, seemingly moving straight towards the Strip.

_What…what the hell…_ Six wondered, trying to figure out if he'd seen these things before. He'd heard rumors of aliens further north, but those had mentioned flying saucers and little green men. If anything, these new arrivals looked like they were in flying coffins.

A sudden burst of static caught Six's attention. He turned towards his ham radio, listening as local radio chatter dramatically intensified. He caught scraps of NCR orders, trying to bring the city into lockdown, and of Freesiders trying to figure out what was going on.

He probably should have been concerned. After all, if these newcomers had aircraft, it was likely that they could bring a hell of a lot worse. Soldiers, sentry bots, maybe tanks…it could be the start of the Third Battle of Hoover Dam, for all he knew.

Six grinned wildly, turning back towards his room. He still needed his duster, his weapons, his supplies…

_Need to look professional for whoever's heading this way, after all,_ Six thought, already looking forwards to whatever happened next.


	3. Chapter 3

"_Wow, what a shithole."_

Tanivia wasn't sure which member of her squad said that, but she couldn't really blame them for that observation. Really, there wasn't anything else she could call the area they were flying over.

From one side of the shuttle, the ruins of a vast, seemingly empty city stretched out before them. Most of the structures had collapsed into rubble, or were simply hollow skeletons at this point, with only a few in 'decent' shape. One or two even had electric lighting present, albeit mostly in massive neon signs in strange, unfamiliar shapes.

On the other side of the shuttle, the window only showed sand.

Miles upon miles of blisteringly hot, _radioactive_ sand.

She sighed, looking over her Phaeston one last time as the shuttle neared the ground. She'd already done it half a dozen times since they had left the _Vigil_, but she couldn't help doing so again. It was something familiar and mind-numbing, which is exactly what she needed at that moment. Anything was better than thinking about how her life had gotten to this point.

Before they'd made the jump through the relay, she had taken one last look through her omnitool's inbox, hoping to see some messages from home. She had not been prepared for the thousands of messages that had been stored up, with most calling her a monster, butcher, or some other such insult. She still wasn't sure whether she agreed with those assessments.

On the one hand, the ones closest to the airlock _had_ charged directly at them once her squad entered, pulling at their armor, punching them, and seeming trying to _bite_ _them through their helmets_. The fact that they were the creepiest fucking things she had ever seen definitely didn't help matters.

On the other…not all of those creatures had attacked them. Some of them had tried to communicate with them, and a few of them had seemingly attempted to surrender, but with the others attacking them and the cramped nature of the ship…

Well, there was a reason none of them had been taken alive.

And yet, after the complete clusterfuck that first contact had been, she had still been selected as part of the ground team to go to their home world and go through an 'official' first contact.

Now that she thought about it, Arvus's perpetually unimpressed attitude towards High Command seemed a little more understandable.

Suddenly, the voice of the pilot broke her out of her thoughts. _"Um, ma'am? I think the landing zone may have been compromised. I'm seeing movement, multiple unknowns."_

Glancing out the window, Tanivia could see numerous figures making their way through the ruined streets nearby. Most of them were wearing identical tan outfits, and seemed to be armed with rifles. A few were carrying around large, tube-shaped weapons, which she assumed was some sort of anti-air weapon.

Which meant that these people were expecting a fight. Which meant that, in the worst-case scenario, they'd have to go through the First Slaughter _again_.

"Damn it." Tanivia muttered. "Set us down in the intersection, over by those rusting…things. Vehicles, I guess. Caepius, you're with me. The rest of you, stay in cover and keep an eye on them. _Do not fire_ unless they fire first." She shouted, turning towards the rest of her squad.

A chorus of "Yes, ma'am" filled the shuttle, and the small craft swiftly glided down towards its destination.

* * *

"I still can't believe it. First the Legion, and now it's _aliens?_ What the hell is with this place?"

"Jenkins, shut it." Sergeant Taylor whispered. "We can talk about how shitty the Mojave is _after_ we make sure these things won't try to blow our heads off."

Internally, however, Jacob couldn't help but think the exact same thing. He'd been there for the Second Battle of the Dam. It had been one of the few times that the NCR could truly concentrate its forces around Vegas, with troopers, Rangers, and everything else Oliver could scrape together holding the line against Caesar.

Hundreds of men, thousands of bullets, and a fucking _bomber_, and they'd still barely held the line against a bunch of screaming lunatics with football gear and rusty machetes. It had been a bloodbath, with the final count of the dead taking hours to finalize.

And now they were facing literal aliens with less than a quarter of the men they'd had at the Dam.

Really, there was nothing else to call the things that had jumped out of that aircraft. They were still humanoid, but the shape of their arms and legs was just…_creepy_. Even with the weird, sci-fi armor those things were wearing, it couldn't mask their weird and inhuman bodies.

Thankfully, they hadn't opened fire yet. All they had done so far was just park in the outskirts of Freeside, forcefully occupy a single intersection, and set up some defenses. Two of them had briefly walked out of their little firebase and shouted something at them, but it seemed like none of those aliens spoke English, and none of the NCR forces in Vegas spoke alien.

Now his squad was stuck sitting in an abandoned pawn shop, peeking out through the broken window to make sure those things hadn't moved yet. It had been an hour, and nobody had opened fire so far.

For an alien invasion, it was a lot less exciting than he had expected.

"Alenko, anything new from command?" Jacob asked, glancing towards the rear of the store.

"Nothing yet." Private Alenko replied, sitting next to a hastily-assembled ham radio. "Just orders for more squads to head this way, and a warning to keep an eye out for the Courier."

"Wait, what? The Courier? Isn't he exactly the sort of guy we _want_ to have around for this sort of situation?" Jenkins asked.

"The warning specifically stated that he was excited." Alenko deadpanned.

Jacob grimaced. He'd heard some of the stories of what the Courier had done before when he was excited. Even now, nobody was sure how he'd managed to get that Brahmin on top of the monument at the Mojave Outpost. Jacob wasn't entirely sure he _wanted_ to know.

That was all fine and good, so long as the Courier was kept away from anything important, valuable, or explosive when he was in one of these moods. Jacob was pretty sure all three of those things were present in the current standoff.

"Well. Shit." Jacob breathed, glancing towards the last member of his squad. "Williams, keep a lookout behind us. If you see the Courier coming, for the love of god, _delay him._"

"Um, sir? I think it's too late for that." Private Williams said, pointing out the window.

Knowing he would regret it, Jacob reluctantly turned back towards the street. Indeed, his worst nightmare had materialized just down the street.

There was no mistaking the Courier once you saw him. From the mind-boggling amounts of firepower that were displayed prominently on his back to the sheer _presence_ the man carried around him, it was practically impossible to miss seeing Courier Six unless he specifically didn't want you to.

With the way the Courier was practically skipping down the street, whistling cheerfully as he walked towards the aliens, it seemed like he was more than happy to let the aliens and NCR alike notice him.

"God damnit." Jacob muttered, grinding his teeth. "Alright, time for damage control. Everyone, on me. We're following him in."


	4. Chapter 4

"What the hell do you mean, _the Asari will take another three hours?!_"

"_I understand you're upset, but-"_

"We've been holding this intersection for anhour_,_ letting the native species surround us with at least two full _companies_ of soldiers, and you're telling me the _actual diplomats_ will be late?! What's taking them so long?!"

"_There's been a…complication. Regardless, your orders still stand. Hold that position until either the diplomats arrive, or until the locals start shooting."_

Tanivia couldn't even bring herself to respond as the comm-link closed, taking Arvus's voice with it. Her thoughts were running wild, completely overwhelmed with the sheer insanity of the situation she had been thrust into.

Yes, just hold their position with incomplete translation software and a single squad, all while completely surrounded. There wasn't any way those anti-aircraft rockets that were being brought up by the locals could be used against, say, _their single shuttle_. Even if it happened with the yahg, it wouldn't happen _here_! History _never_ repeated itself!

She shook her head, trying to clear the bitter sarcasm from her head. While those thoughts certainly were satisfying, she had to focus on the mission for the moment. The lives of the soldiers nearby, both Turian and native, would depend on her keeping a cool head. Besides, their shields still gave them a significant advantage over the locals.

Well, as long as they didn't bring out actual artillery, at least. Even eezo could only do so much.

"Local contacts approaching! About half a squad, from the north!"

Hearing Caepius's shout, Tunivia rushed towards their makeshift barricade, ducking down behind the rusting remains of some sort of vehicle. More of her men quickly followed, taking aim at the natives approaching them.

Four of them appeared to be members of the local military force surrounding them, wearing the same tan and dark brown fatigues as the rest of the native soldiers. They all wielded basic rifles instead of those anti-aircraft rockets, thankfully, and they all hurriedly followed after a fifth figure. Likely just an escort, although from what she could see of their faces, they seemed…worried?

The fifth figure was more difficult to consider. The native wore a set of armor that completely covered their body, with a long brown coat, black armor plating near the torso, faded blue pants, and a combat helmet that completely covered their head. They weren't holding any weapons in their hands, but she could make out several holsters strapped around their legs and waist, along with a much, _much_ larger rifle strapped to their back.

It was clear that, whoever this figure was, they weren't one of the common soldiers currently surrounding them. It was possible that they were a local warlord, or some sort of special forces unit operating in the region. It would explain the style and variety of their gear, at least.

And possibly explain why they appeared to be cheerfully jaunting their way towards them, waving energetically with one hand while obviously ignoring the soldiers behind them.

"…Is everyone on this planet insane?" Caevius whispered, fidgeting nervously.

"With this much radiation, probably." Tanivia groaned, standing up. "Alright, let's try this again. Caevius, with me. The rest of you, cover us."

Ignoring the nervous feeling in her stomach, Tanivia carefully climbed over the makeshift barricade. Caevius quickly followed, with more members of the squad quickly taking up their former positions. Together, the two hesitantly made their way further down the street, keenly aware of the dozens of rifles pointed at them.

Ahead of her, the armored figure paused in the middle of the road, planting their hands on their hips in a way that could only be described as relaxed. A small part of Tanivia's mind noted that the figure had chosen to stop several meters away from the nearest cover, in a spot that was clearly visible to both her squad and the local soldiers. It was possible that it was meant as a gesture of goodwill, for whatever that was worth.

The rest of her mind was focusing on the fact that, as the rest of the figure's escort caught up with him, one of them seemed to be _yelling_ at him and tugging repeatedly on the figure's sleeve. Through it all, it didn't seem that the figure even noticed the other soldier.

…_Maybe it's not just the radiation that's messing with these people,_ Tanivia mused, stopping a few feet away from the group. _Either way, it's time for round two._

"Greetings, local forces," She began, hoping that the translation software would finally kick in. "We are representatives of the Citadel Council. We come in peace."

* * *

"…Any of you guys get that? I've got nothing." Six said, glancing at his newest companions. All he'd heard was a weird grating, cawing sound, almost like a weaker version of a Deathclaw. It was sorta cute, in a way.

The aliens themselves weren't what he had been expecting either. Instead of little green men with ray guns and shiny outfits, the aliens were about as tall as him, with each wearing sleek white and blue suits of full-body armor. Their guns were just as interesting, with the two in front of him wielding what was obviously some sort of assault rifle.

_Been a while since I got to check out a new gun. I wonder how it handles?_

Sadly, it didn't seem like any of the NCR soldiers that had followed him were willing to play along. Two of the riflemen were just staring intently at the aliens, very pointedly keeping their rifles swung away from the newcomers. The other two soldiers were staring intently at him, although it seemed like it was for different reasons.

"Sir, _please,_ let's just get back to cover. Ambassador Crocker will get here any minute now, and he can deal with any necessary negotiations." The angry one requested, yanking on his sleeve.

"Jacob, what the hell is someone like Crocker supposed to do when nobody can actually understand these guys? Besides, it's _Courier Six_! If anyone can talk to them, it's him!" Begged the excited one, still staring at him in a slightly creepy manner.

"Fellas, fellas, calm down." Six ordered. "Look, I've got something that might be able to help us out with them. Just _relax_, alright?"

With that, he reached into his duster, scrounging around in the countless pockets within. He just needed to reach past the meds, the ammo, the explosives, the handguns, the caps, the knives, the food, the _good_ meds, the junk…

…_I didn't leave it in the other duster, did I? Oh, _man_, that would be awkward._

"Sir, what the hell are you doing?" Jacob asked.

"Just looking for a thing some…_friends_ of mine gave me a little while back. Apparently, it's some sort of universal translator…thing. I figure it might be handy in understanding what these guys are saying." Six grunted.

_Well, either that, or mutate us until we all just speak in groans and screams. When the Think Tank gets involved, it's never easy to tell._

"…How would that even work? Nobody's heard aliens talk before."

"Trust me, when these guys say 'universal', there's a good chance that it really is universal." Six said, finally finding the device he was looking for.

It was a small, metal box, with a green glowing screen and a tiny keyboard on one side, a small speaker on another side, and a small microphone sticking out of the top. From what the Think Tank had explained to him, supposedly using the device was as simple as either speaking into the microphone and having it translate on the screen or typing a message with the keyboard and having the speaker play it in a different language.

That simplicity was exactly why Six didn't trust it fully. The Think Tank making a simple invention was like General Oliver being humble, or Cazadors being pleasant to be around; it just didn't happen. Not to mention the fact that the Think Tank had decided working on a _translator_ was more interesting than working on Cazaclaws, or super lobotomites, or whatever ungodly abominations they had on the back burner.

But still, with literal aliens being right in front of him, it was hard to deny that it would be useful to actually understand what they were saying.

"Okay, so…just flip on the switch, angle it towards them, and…" Six muttered, fiddling with the device and pointing it towards the aliens. The two figures shifted backwards slightly, staring at the device like it was a weapon. One of the aliens squawked, pointing at the translator.

A few seconds later, a line of text appeared on the screen.

'_Did they just respond to us by pulling out a grenade?'_

"…How the hell…" Jacob muttered behind him. Glancing to the side, Six saw that the entire squad was now staring at the translator with wide, shocked eyes.

"Pre-war mad science is a hell of a drug." Six said, grinning wildly as he typed in his own message for translation.

'_No, but I'm honestly surprised it didn't blow up. Welcome to our wonderful stretch of the wasteland.'_


	5. Chapter 5

It had been a rather frustrating experience for Arvus ever since they'd made their way into the system.

He'd been at his station for days, ensuring the _Eternal Vigil_'s systems ran smoothly, that the other ships in the expedition weren't detecting anything unusual, and keeping tabs on the status of the ship's crew. Nothing unusual for a typical patrol mission, even if the overall situation was anything but normal.

He'd been slightly worried when he'd been asked to send his men to the planet to secure a landing site, but in the end, he'd still ordered them down. With the commander of the expedition herself 'asking' him to do so, there really hadn't been any chance of refusing. Once a landing zone was secured, they'd send down the diplomatic team, talk to the locals, and bring yet another species into the Council's fold.

But then they'd discovered that, _somehow_, they'd managed to miss _yet another spaceship_ already floating above the surface of this planet. Despite having the best scanners the Council could afford, and likely an entire cell of STG agents within the fleet, they'd missed a ship that was _bigger than a dreadnought_ in orbit nearby.

It wasn't anything like the other ones that they'd encountered so far. Whereas the others were somewhat conical, heavily rusted, and heavily irradiated, this ship was a smooth, massive metallic disc, with glowing green highlights.

There was also the fact that it didn't give off any eezo signatures, had an exposed main gun that put the _Vigil_'s to shame, and was made out of completely unidentifiable materials.

Which meant that either this species was much, _much_ more advanced than they'd anticipated, or that there was yet _another_ species they'd need to establish contact with.

_Because we _really_ needed yet another complication with this mission. Just what I wanted._

Either way, the rest of the expedition had practically frozen in light of this new discovery. The commander wanted to make sure that the diplomatic team was able to contact the ship first, while the other captains were making sure that their guns were ready to swing towards the new contact at a moment's notice.

And yet, despite this, he'd been ordered to leave his soldiers on the ground, _without any kind of support_, until the situation in orbit had been resolved. They would send reinforcements 'in an emergency', but until that point, they were on their own. Because being surrounded by hundreds of heavily-armed locals with no common language somehow wasn't an emergency.

Arvus groaned, holding his head in his talons. His migraine was in full swing now, making it feel like his head would split open at any second. From his glances around the rest of the CIC, the rest of the crew were feeling similarly frustrated. They were being forced into a bad situation yet again, and it was even more likely that they'd end up taking casualties.

Sighing, Arvus shook his head. The situation was bad, but it wasn't as bad as it could have been. Tanivia's last report, while slightly angry, had been somewhat positive. The locals weren't attacking, and her soldiers hadn't gotten too jumpy.

_It's going to be fine, Arvus. It's going to be absolutely-_

"Sir! Incoming transmission from Corporal Tanivia!"

_Why now, why now, why _right after _I thought that, damn it?_

"Put her on." Arvus ordered, straightening himself up and clearing his head. If the worst had happened, he needed to be ready to send out orders as quickly as possible.

After a few short moments, Tanivia's voice echoed out of this ship's speakers. _"Eternal Vigil, this is ground team, do you copy? We have a…situation here. A weird one."_

"What kind of 'situation', Tanivia?" Arvus asked, already feeling dread build up inside of him.

_"We've gotten in contact with the locals. They managed to make a text-to-speech translator that works with us. Somehow."_

"…Say again, Tanivia?"

_"We can talk to the locals with some sort of computer they've got. I have no idea how it works, and neither do they. Either way, we've been talking to them for the past twenty minutes."_

That was…good? Bad? Impossible?

On the one hand, his soldiers weren't being shot at. From the sounds of things, they had been successful in keeping the situation controlled.

On the other hand, the team that had personally fired first upon these people was now talking to the local officials without a single diplomat present and via technology that should not exist.

_Who am I even kidding? This is going to be bad. Very, very bad._

"…How much have you told them about us?" Arvus asked, silently begging that they hadn't told the locals about the other ships they'd encountered.

_"We haven't gone into anything classified or dangerous. At least, as far as I know. We're just covering the basics so far. Is there any chance the Asari are on their way here yet?"_

Arvus glanced over at a nearby comms officer, grimacing when the crewman shook his head. "They're still occupied right now. The situation in orbit is…sensitive."

_"Try to get them down here soon if you can. The local leader's been fairly welcoming so far, and he's willing to let us examine some of their gear. We wouldn't mind a little help with negotiations, though. They nearly convinced Caevius to trade his rifle for a plasma gun."_

* * *

"That was a joke! A _joke_! I wasn't actually going to do it!"

"Then you _really_ need to work on your jokes, Caevius." Tanivia said, giving him the most deadpan stare she could muster.

She couldn't completely blame him, though. After 'Courier Six' had let them examine some of the local weaponry, she'd almost been willing to do the same thing. The projectile-based weapons the local soldiers were using weren't impressive, as expected. Six's guns, on the other hand…

_They're literally a post-apocalyptic society. How the hell do they have infantry-scale laser and plasma weaponry before us?_

"Regardless, we should be fine for now, sir. Whatever's going on up there, please get us an actual diplomat soon." Tanivia continued, facing her omnitool.

_"…Understood. We'll do our best. Just…don't make the natives upset until then."_ Arvus ordered, with the call cutting out shortly afterwards.

"Like we'd _want_ to make them upset." Tanivia muttered, turning back towards the rest of the group. Courier Six was standing near Caevius, with both energetically communicating through the bizarre translation device. The 'New California Republic' soldiers that had accompanied Six were milling around, either watching the discussion going on nearby or glancing around nearby.

After the language issue had been solved, the tension had dropped remarkably quickly. The rest of her squad and the other native soldiers were much more relaxed than before, and the weapons had finally been lowered.

Not that the rest of her soldiers were going to _leave_ their position at the intersection, of course. It was just that occupying that position simply felt slightly less hostile than before.

_At least this 'Six' person seems fairly calm about it so far._ Tanivia mused, moving back towards the conversation. She had been expecting some sort of ruthless warlord, or deranged dictator, or something else of a similar nature. She hadn't been expecting an easygoing, friendly, upbeat person underneath the hulking mass of guns, armor, and equipment the man wore.

As she rejoined Caevius, hearing him laugh and chatter happily with Six, she couldn't help but feel slightly better about the whole situation. They'd avoided a yahg-level fuckup, at the very least, and Six had been levelheaded so far.

_Maybe this won't be so bad after all?_

* * *

**Sorry about the previous formatting issues, it should hopefully be fixed now.**


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